Aspyr’s Sims 2 to Hit Store Shelves by June 17

Aspyr Media on Monday announced that gamers will be able to find The Sims 2 on store shelves by June 17. This sequel to the best-selling computer game in history greatly expands on the originalis premise. Now players can follow their Sims from the cradle to the grave, choosing one of five aspirations to work toward and monitoring the charactersi wants and fears. The Sims also now feature digital DNA that they pass on to their offspring, with the possibility of playing through almost limitless generations of the digital people.

The Sims 2 also offers improved house-building functions, new neighborhoods already populated by pre-made characters and the ability to import towns from Sim City 4, another EA game released for the Mac by Aspyr. Gamers can also now capture in-game footage with The Sims 2is virtual camera and use editing software, such as iMovie, to create their own stories.

The Sims 2 is rated "T" for "Teen" and is available now for pre-order at US$49.99. System requirements call for Mac OS X v10.3.8 or higher, a G4 or G5 1.2GHz processor, 256MB RAM, 3GB free hard drive space, a DVD drive and a 32MB video card.